Evaluating the Potential Impact of Global Warming on the UAE Residential Buildings
In the article called Evaluating the Potential Impact of Global Warming on the UAE Residential Buildings, the author focuses on the negative consequences of global warming on the situation in the United Arab Emirates (Radhi, 2009). The effects specifically concern the built environment and the requirements for energy use in buildings with air-conditioning. The hot climate in the country also negatively contributes to problem-solving. In the study, the focus is made on Al-Ain city to discuss and evaluate energy use, as well as investigate the patterns of energy consumption. The given evaluation is necessary for defining and outlining the most efficient strategies for reducing and preventing the influence of climate changes on the overall meteorological and environmental situation in the city.
The paper pays attention to residential buildings to state that global temperature increase influences a higher level of energy consumption. Specifically, provided the temperature in the city raises by almost 6 %, the energy consumption will also augment by 23.5 %. Carbon-dioxide emissions could be significantly higher during the next several decades. The results of the study demonstrate that the new design of energy consumption system, including thermal mass and thermal insulation, is indispensable to reducing the effects of global warming whereas glazing systems and window areas are advantageous and highly sensitive to the new climatic conditions. Additionally, new systems can reduce the amount of net carbon dioxide emissions.
The paper provides an extensive account of climatic, chemical, and engineering processes that contribute to the problem of environmental pollution in the United Arab Emirates, and, therefore, the article is of great use for further research studies in the field.
Indoor Air Pollutants and Health in the United Arab Emirates
The article under analysis is called Indoor Air Pollutants and Health in the United Arab Emirates and is dedicated to the evaluation of the impact of indoor air pollutants on health in the United Arab Emirates (Yeatts et al. 2012). Additionally, it discusses the lack of research on the health-risks of unstable environmental situations in the region, particularly in countries with a low level of economic development. The authors aim to provide data on multiple factors of indoor air exposure through population-based research of indoor air pollutants and their influence on the physical wellbeing of Arabian people. The research premises on a cross-sectional study that defines 628 households in the UAE and such indoor air pollutants like nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, formaldehyde, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon monoxide.
Further in the article, the scholars also pay closer attention to the connection between health-related disorders and indoor air exposures to define such symptoms as wheezing, asthma, and speech-restricting wheeze. There is also a positive correlation between the above-enumerated air pollutants and other respiratory symptoms, including difficulty with breathing, cough, shortness of breath, and chest tightness. Additionally, tobacco smoking has been discovered as one of the precursors of the increased ratio of air pollution in the Middle East region. The scholars provide a valuable note concerning related research in the field to support the validity of their study. In conclusion, the authors have highlighted a variety of indoor air pollutants in a densely populated region. The small percentage of the participants has proved the positive correlation between respiratory syndromes and the high foci of chemical substances emitted into the air. The importance of the research consists of developing a strong scientific foundation for further studies in the field of healthcare and environmental pollution.
The burden of Disease Attributed to Anthropogenic Air Pollution in the United Arab Emirates: Estimates Based on Observed Air Quality
The main topic of the article called Burden of Disease Attributed to Anthropogenic Air Pollution in the United Arab Emirates: Estimates Based on Observed Air Quality focuses on the influence of particulate matter and ozone on the development of diseases in the United Arab Emirates, a promising and economically prosperous country which attains much importance to the environmental challenges (Li et al., 2010). This is of particular concern to the problems with proper air quality management. Insufficient control of air quality is predetermined by ambient measurement for air pollutants reduction, degraded visibility, and problems with media spread. Vehicle traffic and excess energy use are also among the leading precursors of inappropriate air quality.
To research the problem, the scholars refer to a mixed-method approach to diagnose the environment and define the previously considered correlations between the burden of disease and related environmental problems. By summarizing the evidence on the ecological situation and habits pursued by the population in the UAE, the authors introduce several equations and hypotheses that need to be proved and validated. The estimation relies on the degree of pollution that premises on the observed air quality data. The estimates have proved the evident connection between lethal outcomes and premature deaths related to the exposure rates of particulate matter and ozone. Despite the inaccuracies in the estimations, the article has provided several conclusions. Specifically, it has been discovered that ambient hair pollution has caused a great number of deaths in the country in 2007. Additionally, the research has found that PM leads to much more serious lethal outcomes as compared to ozone. Therefore, the article introduces valuable information that could be used for further research on the influence of air pollution on the increasing number of diseases.
UAE at the Forefront of Economic Protection
The article under consideration is called UAE at the Forefront of Economic Protection and is dedicated to the new legal regulations imposed on the production and impact of chemical substances used in agriculture to prevent water and air pollution (UAE at the Forefront of Economic Protection 2002). The UAE government has introduced legal restrictions to control the emission of dangerous gases into the air. Additionally, the law reinforces the regulations prohibiting the utilization of 57 insecticides applied in agriculture. The legal system also encourages using natural substances and imposes limits on the production of chemical substances in the region. Import of chemicals is also banned on the territory of the UAE. Instead, the government focuses more on planting and cultivating various kinds of substances. A series of regulations have been created to control the shipment processes, which can prevent the emission of oil into the sea. All these regulations ensure the country’s substantial growth and development, as well as improve the ecological situation.
At the beginning of the article, the paper refers to the background information explaining the current changes in the legal regulations. Specific attention is given to the analysis of the UN General Assembly in 1972 when the World Environment Day has been established to raise the population awareness of the ecological situation and take measures to improve the ecology of the region. UN Environment Program has also been launched to regulate environmental issues. Further discussion resorts to the estimation of various agreements and conferences devoted to the consideration of recent shifts in managing air pollution issues in the United Arab Emirates. The newly concluded contracts have promoted new perspectives for enhancing climate conditions and developing agriculture.
References
Li, Y., Gibson, J. M., Jat, P., Puggioni, G., Hasan, M., West, J., Vizuete, W., et al. (2010). Burden of Disease Attributed to Anthropogenic Air Pollution in the United Arab Emirates: Estimates Based on Observed Air Quality Data. Science of Total Environment. 400, 5784-5793.
Radhi, H. (2009). Evaluating the Potential Impact of Global Warming on the UAE Residential Buildings – A Contribution to Reduce the CO2 emissions. Building and Environment. 44, 2451-2462.
UAE at the Forefront of Economic Protection. (2002). UAE Interact. Web.
Yeatts, K. B., El-Sadig, M., Leith, D., Kalsbeek, W., Al-Maskari, F., Couper, D. et al. (2012). Indoor Air Pollutants and Health in the United Arab Emirates. Environmental Health Perspectives. 120(5), 687-694.